


Underdog

by flights_of_fancy



Category: Life Is Strange 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Bullying, Family, Friendship, Gen, Minor Violence, One Shot, Post-Canon, Redemption Ending, School Drama
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:01:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21851836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flights_of_fancy/pseuds/flights_of_fancy
Summary: Even with her family’s guidance, Lupe has trouble dealing with her powers. She might be able to manage herself at home, but the pressure of an unwelcoming middle school is an entirely different beast.A follow up to “The Only Constant”.
Relationships: Sean Diaz & Original Character(s), Sean Diaz/Lyla Park (Implied)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 23





	Underdog

**Author's Note:**

> ah shit, here we go again

“Do I have to go back?” Lupe fiddled with the clasp of her bracelet. She tilted her head up slightly, getting a glimpse of her father’s face through the rear view mirror. 

Sighing, he turned the car radio off. “We already let you stay home an extra day,  _ mi hija _ .” 

“I go to the library almost everyday. Can’t I just skip all the school stuff?”  It might have been a joke, but a part of her was secretly hoping to hear a ‘yes’. 

“You know it doesn’t work like that.” Her dad chuckled softly. “There are some things books can’t help you with.” 

“Like what?”

“Like making friends.” 

She pushed her glasses up before folding her arms over her chest. “You always tell me I have to be careful around others.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to avoid everyone.” He paused, running his fingers through his hair. “You’re growing up, almost a teenager.You shouldn’t be alone.”

“But I’m not alone.” She said matter-of-factly, pulling her bag onto her lap. “I know lots of people! You, mom, Tío Daniel, Tío Chris, Mrs. Curtis-”

“People your age, Lupe. Not just family.” He sucked in air through his teeth. “And the librarian.” He gestured around with one hand, keeping the other firm on the wheel. “There’s a world out there I don’t want you to miss. School’s a good start.”

Sinking into her seat, Lupe gazed out the window, her eyes tracking the trees and houses as the passed by. She wished the radio were still on.

“They all think I’m weird.”

“That’s not true.” 

“Yeah, it is. They either ignore me or they’re mean about it.” Wrapping her arms around her backpack, she rested her head on top of it. “But somehow,  _ I’m  _ the bad guy.  _ I’m  _ the one who got in trouble.”

“You used your powers against them.” 

“I-I didn’t mean to! I told you already. It just happened.” She leaned her head against the window, sheepishly adding, “They kind of deserved it, anyway.” 

“Lupe.” 

“You didn’t hear what they said.”

“It doesn’t matter. You have to be the bigger person.”

“Or what? They’ll kick me out again? I don’t even want to be there.”

“Guadalupe. This isn’t just about school.” Her father’s grip on the wheel tensed. “If you do something wrong, even if you were trying to protect yourself, trying to protect others… people aren’t always gonna be so… forgiving. Not to us.” His voice grew quiet. “My life wasn’t easy. You deserve so much better than what I got.” 

He glanced back at her, a solemn look on his face. “You have to work harder than most kids. You need to control it.”

Lupe sighed. Looking ahead, she saw the school forming at the end of the street. “I’m trying, dad. I really am.” 

“You just have to keep at it.”

“That’s easy for you to say.” She mumbled, tracing the patterns of her bracelet with her thumb. “If Tío Daniel were here right now, he’d understand.”

“Lupe…” The way her dad’s voice faltered made her regret her words. He pulled over to the front of the school and turned his head towards her. “When it comes down to it, I just want you to do the right thing, okay?”

She let out a heavy breath. “Okay.”

Content with her response, he nodded, settling back into his seat. “Now, what are the rules?” He asked, his tone almost playful.

“Dad.” She groaned and motioned towards the cars coming into the parking lot. “We don’t have time for this.”

“So you  _ want _ to go to school all of a sudden?” Facing her with a tender smile, her dad lightly nudged her. “Come on, you know them.”

“Dad…” 

“Can’t leave until I hear them.”

She scrunched her nose and tried to ignore the line of cars beginning to form behind them. Shaking her head, she relented. “Hide my powers. Never tell anyone. Stay out of trouble.”

“And?”

Lupe’s brows furrowed. “There’s only three.”

“You forgot ‘Always stick with a buddy.’”

“That’s not a rule!”

He shrugged. “Well, I’ve amended the rules, so now you have to do it.”

Grumbling to herself, she took her backpack and got out of the car. Her father rolled down the window, leaning towards her. “Have a good day today. At least try. I love you,  _ nena _ .”

She paused before giving him a weak smile. “I love you, too.” 

Lupe watched him drive away. Turning, she faced the school, holding her breath as she sized up the building. It seemed bigger than usual. Pulling her braid over her shoulder, she slung her bag onto her back and made her way inside.

Entering the main corridor, she shyly waved at the people lined up against the walls. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a few students in her grade pointing at her, talking among themselves. She felt heat rising to her cheeks. Noticing the lights flicker, she held onto herself, clinging to the sleeves of her jacket. 

She hurried to the end of the hall, where her locker waited for her. The moment she reached it, she quickly gathered what she needed for the day and shoved her bag in. Shutting the door, she saw one of her classmates was opening her locker nearby. 

Lupe glanced down at her English notebook. She probably missed a lot while she was gone. It wouldn’t hurt to ask about it. Straightening her glasses, she stood tall and approached her.

“Hey, Gia?” She piped up, but the girl just continued to unload her bag. Taking a deep breath, she mustered the courage to tap her on the shoulder. “Gia?” 

Pulling out her earbuds, she turned to Lupe, her face contorted in confusion. “Weren’t you expelled?” 

“Oh, no, I was just suspended.” 

Lupe mentally slapped herself. Like that was  _ so _ much better. 

“It’s not a big deal.” She explained, frantically waving her hands in front of her. “I mean, it  _ was _ , but it’s all good now. So… here I am.” She leaned on the lockers and tried to mask her grimace with a smile. “Um, what did you guys do in English?”

Gia quickly glanced behind Lupe. She packed her earbuds into a small case, avoiding eye contact.“We finished with the Tell-Tale Heart projects. Then we started on some poem.”

“That’s it?”

“Pretty much, yeah.” 

“Cool.”

“Mhm.”

“Finally done with Poe.” 

“Yup.” 

“I think his stuff’s cool, but it’s kind of-”

“Um, sorry, Lupe, but my friends are waiting for me.” She weakly pointed towards a water fountain behind her, where two snickering girls watched them. “I have to go.”

“Oh, right.” She nodded slowly, shooting finger guns at her. “Sorry. See you later.”

“Yeah, see you around.” Gia let out a nervous chuckle before rushing over to the girls. As they walked away, Lupe saw them peeking back at her over their shoulders. She heard them speaking in hushed whispers, only catching bits of their conversation.

“You’re so brave, Gia.”

“What’s her problem?”

“Total creep.”

The hallway started to get louder. More packed.

Lupe felt like everyone was staring at her again. Like everyone was talking about her. Laughing at her.

The lights flickered again. The main doors swung open, letting in a strong gust of wind. No matter how hard they pushed, the teachers couldn’t get them to close. 

A few students behind Lupe shrieked, and she turned to see large trash bins toppled over, spilling their contents into the hall. She ducked her head behind her binder and sprinted into the nearest restroom. 

Now alone, she set her belongings down on a sink. The stall doors rapidly opened and closed. The faint lights overhead blinked on and off. Her binder and notebooks flew away, loose papers swirling high above her. Outside, she could hear the students making a commotion while the teachers tried to calm them down.

Bringing her arms close, Lupe closed her eyes. She rubbed her bracelet between her fingers and recited the rules under her breath.

Hide her powers. Never tell anyone. Stay out of trouble.

Lupe opened her eyes, and the room was still. 

She could control herself.

She had to.

* * *

Free days in P.E were always the best. Since it was right before lunch, it gave her extra time to be on her own, and, considering what had happened that morning, being on her own was all she wanted to do.

Coach never cared anyway. No one was ever going to send a search party for her.

Hidden among the rows of trees, she made her way towards the back of the grass field. She travelled along the fence that marked school boundaries. The sound of her class laughing and playing around grew faint as she continued down the path. As the wind picked up, Lupe zipped up her jacket, keeping her arms around herself. 

Walking towards a beaten down shed, she quickly checked the surrounding area. Once she knew it was clear, she waved her hand, forcing the lock open.

Squeezing through doors, she was greeted with loads of gym and field equipment stacked up on each other. Pushing her hands away from her, she levitated all clutter, moving them to the side to create a clear path. Then, she motioned towards a bin, taking out a playground parachute. She folded it up to a smaller size, then hovered it high between two shelves, tying each end to the bars. She set a few stepping boards and boxes in front of the parachute, arranging them at different heights to form stairs.

She found it a little annoying, having to revert everything after each visit, but it was the only way to keep anyone from becoming suspicious. At least her powers made it easier to fix it up in a matter of seconds. 

Lupe lifted up a floorboard, and underneath it was her writing journal. Grinning, she picked it up, holding it close. After climbing up into her makeshift hammock, she opened it, flipping through her old poems and lyrics until she finally reached her latest song. Pulling out a few pages of sheet music she tucked into the back of her journal, she traced the notes on the staff with her finger. 

Maybe one day she would sneak in her viola. Or her guitar.

Humming to herself, she tapped her pencil to her chin, every once in a while jotting down whatever she thought sounded right. She stared out the window, watching the grass and trees dance in the wind. In the distance, she saw two figures roaming the field. Two students. 

They weren’t wearing P.E. uniforms, and they were heading towards the shed.

She leaned over the window, squinting as she tried to recognize their faces. Her eyes widened with the realization of who they were.

Dylan, with the black eye she gave him practically flaring on his pale skin.

Emmett, following his younger cousin like hired muscle. 

Biting her lip, she looked around the room she set up for herself. They already figured out where she was. She didn’t want to risk them following her in.

Lupe scrambled out of the parachute, then stored her journal back underneath the floorboard. Rushing to the back, she pulled a few panels off the wall, creating a hole that led outside. She held out her hand, returning everything to its original state before crawling out of the room. After sealing the hole, she began to sneak around the side of the shed. She was ready to bolt to the trees, but she was yanked back by the collar of her shirt. 

Her head spinning, she stumbled into the shed door. Once she recovered, she opened her eyes and found Emmett towering over her. Dylan stood close behind him, arms crossed, a twisted smirk on his face.

“Hey, Park.” Emmett scowled, saying her name like it was a curse. She remained silent, averting his gaze. “You’re back too soon. Maybe  _ you _ should have gotten fifteen years.”

“It was an accident. I’m sorry.”

“Just shut up. Stop with the good girl crap.” He pushed her by the shoulder. “You’re a freak. Everybody knows it.”

“I really didn’t mean it, I swear.” She held her hands up in defense.

“What’s this, Loopy?” Dylan snatched her wrist. He gave her bracelet a harsh tug, and the clasp snapped. Laughing, he tossed it over to Emmett, who held it over her head. 

“Hey! Give it back!” She jumped up, trying to grab it, but it was always just out of her reach. Dylan seized her arms, pressing them behind her back. She struggled, fighting against him, but there was no use. She wasn’t strong enough on her own.

If she could use her powers, she could easily get out of the hold.

But no.

She couldn’t let her mind go there. 

Emmett tore the bracelet at the seam, and it unraveled to reveal a worn out red bandana. Lupe felt the grasp on her wrist tighten as Dylan pulled her closer. “Bet she’s in a gang or something.” 

“Probably her dad’s.” Emmett sneered, bringing a hand up to cover his left eye.

“Please stop.” She begged, her voice shaking.

He crossed his arms. “Or what?”

“Or…” She tilted her chin up, trying to look as confident as possible. “Or I’ll tell Coach Anderson.”

“You’ll tell her what?” He demanded, getting in her face. “That you ditched? That you were hiding  _ here _ ? That you picked the lock? You think she’ll like that?”

Lupe hesitated. “No.”

“You still want to tell her?”

She bowed her head. 

“That’s what I thought.” Dylan shoved her, her glasses falling off as she tumbled to the ground. She laid there, helpless as Emmett ripped the bandana.

“No!” She shrieked, trembling as she reached out to him. He tore off another piece, and the two roared with laughter. Her heart pounding, she felt her fingers twitching.“What… what do you want from me?”

“I wanna know how a twig like you could have knocked us out.” 

“I-I don’t know.” 

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

She clenched her fists, bringing them close to her chest. “I can’t explain it! I just- I just-”

“You just what?” 

“Please, stay away from me.” She could hear things in the shed begin to rattle around. The door were the only thing keeping it all hidden. 

It was the only thing keeping everyone safe.

“What’s wrong, Park? Don’t want to fight anymore?” 

“I don’t want to hurt you.” 

“Come on, you had no problem knocking us out last week. Get up!” Emmett swiftly kicked her side, but she barely felt the pain. She had another battle to worry about.

She curled up on the floor, covering her ears and shutting her eyes. It felt like there was a storm in her head, and it grew stronger every second the boys continued to scream at her. If she could just block them out long enough, she could keep her powers at bay. 

“Get up! Don’t be such a baby!” 

Trying to calm herself down, she repeated the rules in her head.

Hide her powers. Never tell anyone. Stay out of trouble.

Another kick. 

She could feel her control slipping. The wind was growing stronger. The banging on the shed doors grew louder. She could hear it creaking open, giving way to whatever was pounding against it. 

“Come on, Loopy!”

“Get up!”

“Hey!” She heard a voice yell in the distance. “Leave her alone!” 

Lupe peeked through her fingers to see a girl approaching them. She couldn’t make out her face, but based on the gym clothes, she knew it was a girl from her class. Lupe could see that she was a bit shorter than Emmett, but it didn’t stop her from stepping up to him. "Back off, dude.” 

He brushed her to the side. “Stay out of this.” 

“This is just gonna be trouble.” She kept a rough grip on his arm, stopping him from coming any closer. “Leave her alone.”

Emmett glared at her for a moment. A moment that seemed to last forever to Lupe. Finally, he scoffed but started to back away. “Whatever.” 

“What the heck?” Dylan gestured towards the girl. “Emmett, you can’t seriously be-”

She grabbed him by the wrist. “Just go already. You guys have better things to do.”

Lupe braced herself but was surprised to hear their footsteps walking away. The clamor in the shed slowly died down. The wind began to calm. The boys were gone.

“Are you okay?” The girl asked, taking a step towards Lupe. 

“I’m fine.” She mumbled, brushing the dirt off her clothes. There was a bit of a sting where Emmett had kicked her, but she felt like it was nothing too serious. She sat up, picking up her glasses. Putting them back on, she was able to get a better view of her classmate.

Aylin.

They hadn’t really spoken before, but she recognized her from running assemblies with the rest of the student council. It was easy to remember her. 

Always wearing a bright scrunchie to tie up her long black hair. Always surrounded by friends. Always smiling. 

Aylin got down to her level, taking a seat beside her. “It’s Lupe, right?” 

She raised a brow, her head tilted slightly in surprise. “Yeah. Yeah, that’s me.” She wrapped her arms around herself. “What are you doing here?” 

“I was just getting that back.” She pointed to a dodge ball, lying on a patch of grass nearby. Lupe briefly looked at it before her eyes wandered to the torn remains of the bandana in front of her. Sniffling, she picked them up.

“Oh. Sorry about your bracelet.” 

Lupe’s vision blurred with tears. She buried her head in her hands, letting out a few muffled whimpers.

“Hey, it’s alright! Don’t cry.” She gently rubbed her arm. After taking a few deep breaths, Lupe started to wipe away her tears, letting the bandana pieces fall to her lap. Aylin gestured to them. “Can I see it?” 

Lupe froze, glancing down at what was left of her bracelet. There was nothing worse she could do it. Hesitantly, she handed it over. 

Aylin turned around and began to work on it. A few moments later, she held out the bandana, now woven into a braid. “Tada!” She took Lupe’s hand and tied it around her wrist. “Here.”

“Thanks.” 

“No prob. It would’ve really sucked if you couldn’t wear it anymore.” She quietly added, “I always thought it looked kind of cool.”

“I think I like it better this way.” Lupe held it up to her braid. “Look. Twins.”

Aylin laughed. She sat there for a moment before walking over to her dodge ball, picking it up. “You wanna join? We’re playing Walk the Plank. My team’s kind of the best.” She tried to spin the ball on her thumb, but it quickly hit the ground with a thud.

Lupe stifled a giggle before ultimately shaking her head. “I’m not very good with teams.”

“It’ll be fun! Just one round?” 

“I-I don’t know.” Lupe stood up, peeking through the crack of the door. She could see bits of wrecked equipment lying around. Keeping her head low, she closed it, fastening the lock and chain onto the handle. “I don’t even know how to play.” 

“We can teach you. Come on.” Before she could respond, Aylin took her hand. “Come with me.” 

Lupe stared at her. The longer she held on, the more her racing thoughts seemed to settle. She found herself nodding, a hint of a smile growing on her face. “Okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys don’t mind a Lupe-centric one shot. I might be up to something with her story… haha just kidding… unless?
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
